Accounting Operations

 
This paper will identify the basic accounting activities to be performed within the college System and establish general policies for each accounting activity. Specific practices and procedures for each accounting activity shall be governed by the policies described below. Accounting policies and practices shall be consistent for all funds regardless of source.

The general objectives and constraints under which these policies will be implemented are:

1. Financial control must be sufficient to maintain the integrity of the System’s legal, budget, and reporting requirements.
2. Accounting operations should be decentralized to the greatest degree possible while maintaining an economical and effective accounting system.
3. Central Administration will be the single interface with the County for accounting purposes.

Budgets and Appropriations - (Exhibit A)

The budget and corresponding appropriations establish the authority to receive and expend a given amount of resources. The budget represents an accepted plan to accomplish a set of goals with specified revenues and expenditures. The budget process is the statutory action granting authority to the Board of trustees for the specific expenditures.

After the budget has been adopted by the Suffolk County Legislature and the appropriations have been made by the Legislature, the accounting process is initiated. Budget transfers, appropriately authorized, allow for shifting of funds.

Upon determination of the amount of appropriations by the Legislature and the loading of the annual operating budget, budget transfers can be prepared to reallocate funds. Budget control will be exercised by Central Administration at the budgetary levels of- Fund, Department, Budget Type, Bureau, and Object. Any of the following required adjustments to the adopted annual operating budget must be reported to the County:

1. Shifts between object codes of $10,000 or more
2. Shifts between Budget Types of $10,000 or more

1. Shifts between object codes of $10,000 or more
2. Shifts between budget types of $10,000 or more
3. Shifts between major object lines of $1 or more

Revenues - (Exhibit B)

Information concerning actual and unrealized income should be maintained and reported monthly for all funds by budgeted revenue categories as defined by the budget. Comparisons of current and periodic revenue projections with budget estimates of revenue are necessary for possible revision of expenditure budgets.

Each unit will be responsible for collecting, depositing and properly distributing all revenues. Receipts will normally be deposited in local banks on a daily basis. All collections must be deposited in the county Treasury within a week. In order to maximize interest earnings, revenue should be transmitted as soon as possible to the county Treasurer. The appropriate Central Administration personnel should have signature authority on all local banks for transferring funds to the county Treasury. Distribution of the revenue to the proper classification should be made as soon as possible, but no later than two weeks

Each unit should maintain records for each budget revenue classification and have available for submission to Central Administration revenue information at the budget level.

Expenditures - (Exhibit C)

To facilitate budget and allotment control of expenditures, an encumbrance accounting system will be utilized. Encumbrances will cover equipment, supplies contractual costs, but they have not been set up for personnel costs. Disbursement of funds will be made after appropriate authorization and pre-audit, including verification that the specified funds are available at the various levels of control. Expenditures will originate with the departments and will flow to campus business office via The IFMS Accounting System. After the campus business officer or Central Administrator approves the documents, the college business office will make final approval. The operation of which will be monitored for policy and procedural performance by the college business office, relying on reports, management by exception techniques and selective audits. Central Business Offices shall be responsible for the final accounting processing, including the writing of checks, the entering of all required accounting information and the preparation and reconciliation of all external reports. The IFMS System shall be responsible for accumulating and maintaining the required data bank in accordance with Central business office specifications. All units will utilize a single system-wide accounting code structure.

Encumbrances: An encumbrance accounting system will be maintained for all funds. This may be accomplished at the department level with its own facilities or at a central business office. Except for direct charges, each requisition or purchase order will be encumbered before a commitment to a vendor is made. Budget control will be maintained, as a minimum, by the respective departments at the following levels: Fund, Department, Budget Type, Bureau, and object.

Vendor Payments: Each invoice from a vendor will be forwarded to the Central business office for further processing. The Central Business Office will certify the payment on the IFMS and this will be generated at the county for check processing. The checks will then be forwarded to the treasurer for signing. The checks will be returned to the college for distribution.

Payments required immediately will be processed through the central business office, and processed with a rush condition.

Reconciliation - (Exhibit D)

The financial records of the college must be reconciled with those of the County Audit and control. Such reconciliation will be facilitated by the consistent handling by all units of the college-System of financial transactions.

Reporting - (Exhibit E)

Each operating unit shall be responsible for providing reports and financial information as requested to the college business office. An annual college-System report and reports to the county will be coordinated by the college business office. Each campus will provide financial data on budgets, revenues and expenditures to college business office as requested. Reports will be in accordance with the uniform accounting code and will include the level of detail as required by the central business office and county audit and control. Monthly revenue and expenditure reports for Central Administration purposes will contain, as a minimum, the following:

By Fund, Department, Budget Type, Bureau, and Object

Financial data supplied by the units for the Annual Report will include detailed expenditures using the complete uniform accounting code. Revenues will be detailed by source.
Illegal purchases
POLICY. It is the responsibility of each person to comply with college and county guidelines when expending public funds (regardless of the source of the funding).
CONTACTS. The campus business offices responsible for processing the transaction(s), or call the Central Business Office
PROCEDURES. Purchasing Services will take the following actions for the following illegal actions:

1. Fragmented purchase requisitions will be combined and processed using the appropriate competitive process.
2. Serial purchases identified by central business office will be stopped and brought to the attention of the appropriate Dean/Director.

USAGE. Any person responsible for initiating an illegal purchase (responsibility will be determined by Department/Dean and/or business director) will be held personally accountable until the transaction is resolved. Resolution options are:

To submit a letter signed by the individual AND the Dean/Director, which must include:

1. Description of the goods or services purchased.
2. Circumstances which led to the illegal purchase.
3. Justification for lack of prior departmental approval.
4. Statement of actions being taken to prevent repetition of the situation.
5. To return goods to the vendor for full credit. The individual may be required to pay restocking or other charges, if any.
6. To pay for the goods or services personally from own funds, NOT from public funds.